Dealing With Three Babies- Life Rant

SO I’VE BEEN M.I.A. for the last two months or so. At the end of April, 2017, my wife gave birth to our 3rd child! It’s been a tiring transition, as it always is with any newborn. The pregnancy was perfect, and our son came out flawless. After a few nights at the hospital to monitor him, we were finally able to take him home.

RANDOM SLEEP PATTERN

IT’S ALL OUT OF whack since the baby sleeps during the day, wakes up after several hours, and also wakes up early in the morning. It’s random, so my sleeping pattern is also random. Got to love it! Days and nights kind of blur into one, and most days I just want to sleep.

MY WIFE AND I take turns watching the baby. She’s breast feeding, so she’s awake every few hours giving him a much needed meal. And he eats a lot! He’s always hungry, so we supplement the breast feeding with formula because my wife just can’t keep up with his demand. That way I’m able to care and feed him while she rests.

THREE IS EXHAUSTING

I FIND MYSELF a little bit more irritable now, since my attention is constantly being pulled every which way. My daughter, 3, is head strong and loud. If she doesn’t get what she wants she wails and let’s you know she isn’t happy. My eldest son, 2, is very sensitive and cries at the smallest things. He always wants to be held, freaks out if I leave to go to the bathroom, and generally loses his cool if I vanish from his field of view.

ALL THE WHILE we’re trying to soothe our newborn, while brother and sister are bouncing off the walls, trying to stick their fingers in his mouth and eyes. Either that, when we calm one baby down, another one acts up and starts balling their eyes out for some reason or another.

I’M A STAY AT HOME DAD. My wife works full time. I do freelance work from home while I take care of the kids, clean up the house, drive her to and from work (since we only have one car), and maintain everything at home. She is off for 3 months, on paid maternity leave, which is really nice. And even with both of us at home for now, taming the 3 of them is still difficult. We manage, and are slowly figuring everything out, but sometimes it’s just pure and utter chaos.

MY KIDS ARE LIKE…

MINI HURRICANES. My wife found a funny meme that said something like, “having kids is like throwing a party you never wanted.” Meaning the house is always dirty. Always. Even when I have everything cleaned and situated, they just destroy it all by the time night falls. It’s a never ending cycle. Toys, clothes, food, paper, pens, pencils, and anything else they can reach is ripped off the shelves, out of the toy box, and tossed onto the floor. Oh the life of a parent.

THAT’S ALSO WHY WE can’t have nice things. My kids are at the age where they get into everything. My wife and I are both artists, and we have a lot of different supplies on hand. Wacom tablets, PCs, pencils, pens, colored pencils, pastels, sketch books, notebooks, and on and on. Whether we put them on a shelf, hide them, or place them out of reach, my kids find ways to get to them. And they don’t find ways in plain sight, oh no! They wait till we go to the bathroom, are too busy focusing on the new baby, or take a moment to make something to eat. We come back, and there’s pens everywhere, marker all over the walls, and sketchbook pages torn and crumpled all about.

LESS TIME TOGETHER

THERE’S ALSO VERY little personal time between me and my wife. That goes for art, freelance, and each other. I can’t remember the last time we went on a date, or didn’t have the little ones along with us. It comes with the territory, I know, but I thought it was something else I should add simply because it’s constantly on my mind.

WHEN WE GO OUT to the store to buy groceries, eat out, go shopping, or just feel like taking a drive –to get some air– the babies are always with us. I know that’s a given. But it was difficult when we only had two kids. They’d cry, grab anything at arms length, run around and hide in the aisles –because they think it’s a game–, and try to fill the cart with toys and candy. All the while I’m trying to keep them in check, keep a level head, and not have a total melt down in public.

THERE WAS ROOM for both of them in the cart. My son was usually in the little child seat while my daughter would walk, or hang out in the basket, with room for whatever we were buying at the time. Now? Our newborn’s baby seat takes up the whole inside of the cart, my son sits in his usual spot, while my daughter is free run off and have a tantrum. Discipline and handling my kids is a whole other blog entry, but I’ll just say that with 3 kids there’s no room for whatever we’re shopping for! So often times, my wife will stay in the car with my son and the newborn, while I walk in with my daughter to get whatever we need. It isn’t overly complicated, but it can be a hassle. And once again, leaving us less time to shop together, which is always a favorite part of going out.

IT’S NOT ALL BAD

IT TOTALLY ISN’T. Children do flip everything all topsy turvy, but they are freaking precious. I love my newborn sincerely, and watching the budding, unique personalities of my son and daughter is wonderful. It’s crazy right now, but a part of me wishes it would last forever.

MY DAUGHTER IS like my best little buddy, always following me around, asking questions, and smiling. It’s so awesome, dude, it truly is. Despite all the crying and sleepless nights, I finally understand the term, “I wish they’d stay this young forever.” Because it isn’t forever. But I guess that’s a whole other blog, for another time.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

SO THAT’S WHERE I’M AT right now. Some days it’s hard for us to keep a level head, but we manage. It’s an interesting time, and while I find myself overwhelmed and irritated more often than not, and the three of them drive me completely insane, but I love them dearly. Sometimes 😛

THANK YOU SO MUCH for reading! I’ll be back with another entry next Monday. As always, keep that imagination kicking! Please take care all, you all rock. Cheers!